Court orders Kampala University to pay sh78m to Nigerian student who annoyed bedridden Prof. Kateregga’s wife
By our reporter
This must be a tough year for Kampala University founder Prof Badru Kateregga. As we recently reported, he is currently recovering at a private medical facility from injuries sustained at the hands of one of his wives following a domestic violence incident.
As he fights for his life, another stress (financial) has come in partly due to another wife of his.
In this latest development, court has ordered the same University to pay millions of shillings to a Nigerian student who was blocked from graduation after three years of study after allegedly annoying another wife of Prof. Kateregga.
HOW DID WE REACH HERE
It all started in 2022 with a civil suit No. 358 of 2022, when Augustine Ndife, a Nigerian student, sued Kampala University seeking for declarations and orders that the University breached its contract; it was fraudulent and professionally negligent. He also asked the court to order an investigation and/or inquire into the university’s admission processes of international students. He further prayed that Kampala University’s license to operate as a University be revoked on top of paying special damages, general damages, exemplary/punitive damages, interest and costs of the suit.
In a ruling dated October 14th, 2024, Justice Esta Nambayo of the High Court (Civil Division), did not disappoint Ndife.
She faulted the University on many things and consequently awarded the student sh50,000,000 as General damages, sh 10,000,000 as punitive damages, sh18, 551,000 as special damages with 8% interest per annum from the date of judgement and costs of the suit.
THE CASE
According to court documents, Ndife joined Kampala University in 2017 as an international student and was offered a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science; vide admission number, 1 8/KUA/BPS/549N.
Upon completion of his three-year course, he was not cleared for graduation. He was later informally told that his troubles reportedly stemmed from annoying Kampala University founder’s wife.
The incident reportedly occurred in November 2020 while Ndife was paying tuition fee and in the process reportedly acted rude by abusing a dean of students and a cashier who happened to be a niece of Prof. Kateregga’s wife.
Following the incident, Ndife was subjected to a disciplinary committee which in turn ordered him to apologise to the two people he had abused in writing.
He did so and believed the issue had been resolved. But he was shocked to learn that the same issue had been used as a pretext to deny him graduation.
This is when he realized the problem was bigger.
When he made a follow up, he was informed that he did not fully comply with Kampala University’s pre-entry requirements for international students and that he had a pending retake in his last year.
Ndife claimed that for the three years that he spent at Kampala University, he was never guided on any preliminary requirements for international students and that the alleged pending retake in his last year was brought to his attention three weeks to the graduation.
That regardless of the short notice, the student sat and passed the re-take but he was still not cleared for graduation.
Left with no option, he sued the university through his lawyer Martin Musigire of LMN advocates.
Lawyers Steven Kawalya and Mohammad Ssebandeke represented Kampala University.
Justice Esta agreed that the student indeed had a cause of action against the University.
“ln this case, it is not in dispute that the Plaintiff was a student at the Defendant University. He pursued a three -year course at the Defendant University and at the end of the three years, he was not cleared to graduate. The Plaintiff’s right to the graduation was violated and it is his claim that the Defendant is responsible for his failure to graduate. I find that the plaintiff discloses a cause of action against the Defendant,” the ruling states.
Ndife’s lawyer also submitted that there was breach of contract by the University when it unjustifiably failed and/or refused to clear his client for graduation despite fulfilling all requirements for graduation. He blamed the University for not guiding his client, who was a foreign student, on undertaking the compulsory remedial course as required by the NCHE of foreign students before admission to a local University.
That it defeats logic to argue that the University issued an admission letter to the Plaintiff, allowed him to study uninterrupted for three years, while collecting tuition from him and assessing his performance and clearing him at every level and thereafter allege that he never complied with the admission requirements.
Ndife’s lawyer emphasized that his client honoured his part of the contract but the University frustrated the former’s graduation on baseless allegations.
Despite Kampala University lawyers’ spirited arguments, Justice Esta agreed that indeed there was a contract between the two parties and went on to blame Kampala University for admitting a student who was not qualified which she called a ‘common mistake’.
“ln this case, the Plaintiff was admitted for a bachelor’s degree at the Defendant University based on qualification that were not adequate for him to undertake a bachelor’s degree in Uganda. Much as the Defendant claims that the Plaintiff should have done a bridging course, this is not what was required. NCHE’s finding was that Mr. Augustine Ndife did not qualify for admission to a Bachelor’s degree programme. Following the above, l would find that the admission contract between the Plaintiff and the Defendant was based on the Plaintiff’s documents that were inadequate for the admission, thereby making the contract void under S. 17 of the contracts Act, 2010.”
REMEDIES
The judge faulted Kampala University for burdening the student by allowing him to apply, get admitted, and study for three years only to stop him from graduating.
“lf the Defendant [Kampala University] had exercised diligence in its admission of the plaintiff [Student] and at every stage of each academic year, the Plaintiff would not have been misled into attending a course for the whole three years without the requisite qualifications. Therefore, it is only proper that the Defendant pays the Plaintiff all that he incurred under S. 54(2) (c) of the Contracts Act,” Justice Esta observed.
In awarding special damages Justice Esta based on the student’s submissions stating that for the three years, he incurred expenses ranging from tuition fees, functional fees, registration fees, transport expenses, purchasing reading materials, medical expenses, accommodation expenses, air tickets to and from Uganda, visa fees, and student pass expenses. After scrutinizing the evidence submitted in form of payment receipts, the student was awarded sh18,451,000.
For the three years that the student wasted at Kampala University and for the period he spent following up the matter, court awarded Ndife sh50m in General damages.
The judge also faulted Kampala University for not making any effort to settle the matter immediately after receiving the NCHE report.
“This has made the Plaintiff run up and down which has also prolonged his stay and expenditures in the country. I find UGX. 10,000,000/- reasonable as exemplary damages,” the ruling further reads.
Kampala University has also been ordered to pay costs of the suit.
“Therefore, in the final result, judgement is entered for the Plaintiff in the following terms:-
- The Defendant be and is hereby ordered to pay the Plaintiff special damages amounting to UGX. 18, 551, 000/- [Eighteen million five hundred fifty-one thousand shillings only).
- The Defendant be and is hereby ordered to pay to the Plaintiff General damages of UGX 50,000,000/- (Fifty million shillings only).
- The Defendant be and is hereby ordered to pay to the Plaintiff exemplary/punitive damages of UGX 10,000,000/- (ten million Uganda shillings only).
- The Defendant shall pay interest on the special damages at the rate of 8% per annum from the date of judgement until payment in full.
- The Defendant pays costs of this suit.
I so order
Dated signed and delivered at Kampala by mail and uploaded on ECCMIS on this 14th day of October, 2024.”
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